JACKSON – Brian Stuard picked a good time to regain his good mojo at the Players Championship, shaking off a shaky second round with a 3-under 69 on Saturday that put him tied for 24th entering Sunday’s final round.

Stuard backed up a 4-over 76 with a birdie-filled third round Saturday, sprinkling in four bogeys around seven birdies at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

He sits at 4-under 212, tied with such PGA notables as Steve Stricker and Zach Johnson and a stroke ahead of Rory McIlroy and Adam Scott.

Martin Kaymer, the 36-hole leader, and Masters runner-up Jordan Spieth, who has yet to make a bogey at the Players, are tied at the top at 12-under 204.

On Saturday, Stuard birdied the par-5 second by rolling in an 18-footer, gave the shot back with a bogey on No. 8 and then dropped in a 7-foot birdie putt on No. 9 to go out at 1-under 35.

The birdie on No. 9 started a string of four straight birdies for Stuard, who made a putt inside of 2 feet on No. 10, a 13-footer on No. 11 and an 8-foot putt on No. 12 to surge up the leaderboard.

He gave a stroke back with a bogey on No. 13 before canning an 18-foot putt on No. 14 for his sixth birdie of the day. He bogeyed the next hole and dropped in a 9-foot putt on the famed No. 17 par-3 before landing a shot in the bunker on the last hole and taking bogey for a 3-under 69.

Stuard will tee off at 12:35 p.m. Sunday with Justin Rose, one group behind Johnson and Stricker. The Golf Channel plans coverage from 12:30-2 p.m. before NBC carries the rest of the final round from 2-7 p.m.